Of Crows and Blood-Red Eyes
by HokagenoNaruto
Summary: Uchiha Itachi never expected to live after his fight with Sasuke. In fact, he was one hundred percent sure that he didn't; him being revived by Edo Tensei assured that. So, even he couldn't help but be surprised when he opened his eyes once more to a world similar, but at the same time, completely different from his own. Given another chance at life, what will Itachi do?


I do not own Naruto or Akame ga Kill. This story is meant for entertainment purposes only, and in no way, shape or form does it express the opinions of the original authors, or myself.

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><p>Uchiha Itachi was not a man who aimed to discover ways to lengthen his life beyond his natural capacity. Nor was he one who wishes at a second chance at life. When he had essentially committed suicide during his battle with Sasuke, Itachi has wished that it would be the last time he would wake. That he would finally be met with some semblance of peace for the crimes he had committed during his time alive, despite the intent of greater good within them.<p>

So when he awoke as an undead warrior opposing the Joint Shinobi Alliance, he was far from pleased. Fortunately, or unfortunately, depending on how you look at it, the gift he had stored inside of Naruto, meant to be used on Sasuke, Shisui's Mangekyou Sharingan, cast the Kotoamatsukami on himself. Itachi fought alongside his brother one final time, defeating the dark genius controlling the many legendary shinobi, Kabuto. They made their peace, and he hoped that his brother had finally understood what to do.

As stated before, he was not a man who wanted second chances. He was satisfied with his death; Itachi had no need or want to be alive again. After defeating Kabuto, he had closed his eyes and smiled kindly as he spoke to his brother for the final time and passed on.

So imagine his surprise, when he opened his eyes- his real eyes- right after "dying" again.

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><p>Itachi lay on the ground in an unknown clearing, surrounded by miles of forest. For a moment, he believed he was dreaming. After all, such landscapes did not exist in limbo. But as more time passed, Itachi began to notice that his "dream" was becoming closer and closer to reality. His right hand slowly came up, feeling his face. Tingling electrical pulses raced through his body as skin made contact with skin, causing his eyes to widen.<p>

He got up, his body somewhat sore.

"What's going on...?" He wondered, curious about where he was. He was wearing the same clothing he had been wearing throughout the majority of his time in life. That is to say, the clothing he wore before fighting Sasuke. Itachi felt around his body, noticing that he still had his kunai and shuriken pouches equipped, as well as the other hidden weapons he once had on his person, each in the exact spot he remembered them to be. Covering him entirely was his Akatsuki cloak, the red cloud patterns bringing back memories of a time long past.

Pulling out a kunai, he gazed into it. His eyes lacked the black sclera that was a telltale sign of resurrection via Edo Tensei. Furthermore, his vision was similar to the time before he had gained his Mangekyou. He could see clearly, his eyes revealing details that he had long forsaken seeing. He glanced up, looking around once more. There were no recent signs of human life that would possibly give him hints.

'Am I...alive?' he thought with wonder. It just couldn't be possible, could it? How could he have been brought back to life, if that is what happened. His grip on his kunai tightened. Sighing slightly, he dragged it across his palm, applying light pressure, opening up a cut.

'Pain. I feel...pain.'

As his hand began to bleed lightly, Itachi was stuck with a new revelation. He was alive. Somehow, through some unknown means and for some unknown cause, he was alive. He didn't know what to make of it. He could be happy of course; he was being given a second chance, different from what Kabuto had done. An actual chance to live his life.

He gazed into his kunai once more, willing his Sharingan to life. It came normally, his chakra flow once again setting in that he was indeed alive. The pinwheel eyes that had caused so much suffering for so many people spun idly, before morphing further as he applied more chakra. Slowly, the three tomoes merged into a single, connected pattern. The shuriken of his Mangekyou.

"So what now?" He mused out loud. What was he to do? Simply live? To find something he enjoyed doing, and do so until he passed away once more?

"I'll leave such questions for a later date," he said, shaking his head, deciding on a rudimentary course of action. His first order of business would be to find civilization. From the trees surrounding him, he could only assume he was somewhere in Hi no Kuni. He began walking in the direction of where Konoha would be, having a mental map and instincts built for where it was from his time in ANBU.

As he walked more and more, Itachi could not help but notice that while there were trees, and many of them, none of them felt like the trees of his homeland. The trees there were much larger and grand, giving off the presence of hundreds of years of aged natural beauty. The trees here were comparatively young, having little chakra running through them.

'Perhaps I've landed in another country, or I'm near the outskirts of Hi no Kuni?'

It would certainly make sense why nothing felt right. As if he was in a different territory altogether; he didn't quite know why he felt this, but he had always trusted his instincts, for they had rarely been wrong.

Thirty minutes later, as he continued to travel idly, Itachi sensed a group of people near his location. It was far from a small group, but the chakra levels that he sensed were barely that of a civilian level, leading him to deduce it was likely a caravan. He took to the trees immediately, hopping from branch to branch to where he sensed they were. With his immense speed, built up from years of being a shinobi, he was there in a matter of seconds.

His curious eyes examined the people as they walked along the caravan from behind a tree. They were wearing clothing that was quite different from the traditional clothing designs that ran fairly similar throughout the Elemental Nations. He noted what appeared to be guards standing at random intervals, hired to protect the merchandise that was being carried. They too, were dressed oddly. The closest resemblance he would think of was the samurai of Tetsu no Kuni, who also wore armour.

Yet, despite that, this armour was clearly designed uniquely. It was much sleeker than samurai armour, allowing for more movement. However, the condensed appearance of the metal made it appear much heavier, but also better suited to withstand blows. A symbol with a circular shield with a bold cross within it was emblazoned on the shoulder of each soldier.

'Why would a caravan hire common soldiers for protection? Granted, they are less expensive, but shinobi have a much higher success rate.'

Itachi gazed on, trying to find anything of interest in the caravan. Other than the strange people and soldiers, the veteran shinobi could find none. He decided to follow the caravan, hoping it would lead him to civilization, which would the first method of discovering where exactly he was situated.

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><p><strong>Two Days Later<strong>

For two days, Itachi had tailed the caravan in hopes it would lead him to civilization. As the caravan progressed on its journey, Itachi noted that the temperature slowly dropped. The dense forests thinned and slowly gave way into a snowy tundra. Itachi, despite being trained to endure in all forms of weather and the Akatsuki cloak being equipped with seals to regulate body temperature, was beginning to feel cold. After observing for some time, he had discovered that the caravan indeed had extra woolen cloaks. Itachi had easily snuck into the carriage in the dark of night and stolen one.

Furthermore, Itachi also noted that the soldiers were acting much more relaxed. While still weary, they appeared to have lost a certain paranoia that plagued their journey through the forests. They had begun laughing, as well as talking avidly with each other over drinks of ale. He had thought that perhaps the caravan had been afraid of the bandit camps that were known to dot the landscape of Hi no Kuni.

But he had bigger problems than his destination. He still had no idea as to why, or how he was even alive. The people appeared to speak the same language as him, though he had yet to make many attempts to read their lips to discern what they were saying. From the few times he had, they were speaking of mundane things that didn't help his cause at all.

He was currently walking some ways away from the caravan, not wanting to be found out. While it would certainly be easier to walk closer to the caravan in the snowy weather, he didn't want to be found out and possibly recognized. Rather than attempting to maintain a Henge and impersonate someone, Itachi had decided that observing from a distance was the much easier alternative, albeit slightly more taxing.

He continued trying to observe his surroundings. From the snow, he would have to say he was in Yuki no Kuni, during the winter months. He had not been to the country very often, but it would explain the snowy weather, as well as the different customs and clothing. He had heard that the people of Yuki no Kuni were a bit different from the rest of the Elemental Nations.

Itachi also couldn't but wonder how the remainder of the war had gone. He had faith that his younger brother and Naruto had managed to emerge victorious. However, war was war, and it was not without sacrifice. The very basis of war itself was sacrifice. It caused the sacrifice of ammunition, food, other forms of weaponry, money and most of all, lives. People died in war, and it was the very thing Itachi had strived to stop in his lifetime.

He would remain a pacifist forever; he knew this to be fact. The horrors he had been forced to view forever scarred him, even to this day. His entire personality had been developed around the thought and dream of keeping the peace. Each and every thing he did was for that purpose- the purpose of having peace; from the massacre of his clan, to willingly becoming a missing-ninja to spy on Akatsuki.

As he had been walking, lost in his thoughts, Itachi had subconsciously noticed that the previously calm winds had begun to pick up. Snow began falling slowly at first, but began to rapidly increase the speed of it's descent, along with the amount. In but a few minutes, a blizzard was raging around him, the winds howling ominously.

Itachi gripped his stolen cloak tighter, pulling it closer to his body. He narrowed his eyes, his survival instincts going haywire. He had a feeling something was amiss.

And he was far from wrong; moments later, he heard a feminine scream come from the caravan, followed by various shouts of the men. He couldn't make out exactly what they said, but Itachi had been in situations such as these far too much and immediately knew what was wrong- they were under attack. But the question of what still remained.

Itachi strained his newly healed eyes, attempting to see through the thick sheets of snow that fell around him. At most, he was able to make out blurry outlines of the caravan and people running around. As he ran closer, he was able to see another shape, one that was far from human. It appeared to stand about ten feet tall, with a lean body and long neck. A long shape ran out from its backside, and Itachi could only assume that it was a tail. It's red eyes glinted even through the snow, shiny white teeth glittering as they ripped into the body of a man. It appeared to have proportionate sized arms.

He was closer to it now, and as it raised his head and roared it's superiority, Itachi felt the pure bloodlust that flowed from the creature. Similar roars erupted from other parts of the caravan, followed by screams of fright and pain.

'There's an entire pack of them,' Itachi thought with slightly wide eyes. He was not normally impressed or taken by surprise by anything. But the fact he had never once before seen this creature was what surprised him. With each moment, he was beginning to believe that he wasn't in Yuki. The country may be filled with snow and constant blizzards, but even it didn't have any reports of monstrous beasts such as these.

Suddenly, Itachi felt something moving towards him. He quickly glanced behind himself, seeing another one of the beasts charging straight at him. He calmly waited for it to near him, jumping over it with graceful ease obtained through years of training, tossing a quick kunai at its head.

The beast moved, diverting the blow the kunai only ended up in its side. It gave a roar of pain, giving Itachi time to burst through a series of handseals, his hands mere blurs to the naked human eye.

**'Katon: Hosenka no Jutsu!'**

Several balls of fire rushed towards the beast from Itachi's mouth. They burst against its skin in miniature explosions, knocking the beast over. Itachi didn't waste any time as it's body rushed forward, kunai already in hand, and stabbed it through the monsters eyes. It gave him a final look of defiance as the light in its eyes faded, passing on to the next world.

He stood up from his crouched position, lightly shaking the snow from his cloak. He wiped the kunai against the monsters skin, and retrieved the one he had thrown earlier.

Itachi ran forward, noticing the other monsters still harassing the people in the caravan. He kept a kunai in each hand, ready to defend himself at any given time.

"They appear to have a decently tough hide. However, while there is some intelligence, they are not very strong by themselves," he muttered absently to himself. As he neared another beast, he noticed it being held off shakily by a soldier, it's maw being prevented from biting into the soldier by the sword that was in its mouth. It growled, lashing its tail out at the soldier's head, aiming for the killing blow so that it could eat the woman and child behind the soldier.

The woman shouted out a warning, but it came too late. The soldier was smashed off to the side, his body colliding with the caravan. The soldier hastily stood up on shaking legs, but the beast was already upon him once more.

However, before it could close its jaws on his head, Itachi interfered. He leaped into the air, his kunai flying straight into the top of the head of the beast. It didn't go very deep, but Itachi quickly remedied that by sinking the kunai into its brain with a drop kick on his descent.

Its heavy body held its ground for a few moments, before falling on its side. The soldier in front of him, who was about to get eaten, dropped to his knees in shock. He seemed to realize he had been saved, and turning to profusely thank his mysterious saviour, but Itachi was already gone, moving onto the next beast.

He noticed that some of the soldiers had formed a tight ring, fighting off a small group of monsters. Within the ring, an elegantly dressed man sat on the ground, clutching a woman who was beside him tightly. He appeared to be middle aged, wearing a royal purple coloured hat, along with a long flowing cloak. Compared to his own, the man's was much more intricately designed. The woman beside him was dressed similarly, though her face contained a lot more make up. Of course, what beauty she might have had was ruined by the utterly petrified look on her face. She was much younger than the man, leaving the question of what sort of relationship they shared hanging.

'That must be their employer, and possibly his daughter.' Itachi thought as he ran to help them.

He jumped on one of the beasts that had been about to break the ring of soldiers, the kunai in his hands flashing forward in two killing blows. One went straight for the beast's throat, slitting it, the other going into the side of its head. As it fell, Itachi pushed off the now dead body with his legs, pulling his kunai with him and landing in a crouch beside it.

The soldiers noticed the new arrival who had clearly just saved them. They gave the hooded newcomer grateful nods, before focusing their efforts back on the fight at hand. He was clearly strong, and his help would be beneficial in saving the lives of their employers.

A second beast that had just picked up a soldier by the waist bit into him, ripping the man in half. Itachi gave a small wince at the gruesome sight as the man screamed at his now separated body. However, he didn't let it hinder him as he jumped forward, slashing at the beast.

It backed away immediately, narrowly dodging Itachi's kunai. It gave him a guttural growl, before its tail whipped forward to smash him to pieces.

The beast appeared to smile victoriously as his opponent was 'hit'. However, it gained a confused look as the once man before him went up in smoke, a shattered rock left in his place. It was put out of its confusion quickly, however, as Itachi sunk both kunai into its head.

There was one more beast remaining, Itachi noted. It was much larger than the others, with a murderous look on its face. It was the first one he had seen, though he noticed one thing he hadn't before. A glittering red gem emerged from its chest, shining dangerously every now and then.

He ran at it, jumped over the bodies of his previous foes.

'The size of this one...it must be the leader. I cannot assume that it will be exactly the same.'

One of the soldiers noticed his charge, and yelled out after him. "Careful, stranger! Its hide is capable of deflecting our blades!"

Itachi glanced at him momentarily, before turning his attention back on the much larger beast in front of him. He threw an experimental shuriken at it, and was not surprised was it bounced off the skin as if it was mere rock.

'It appears the soldier was right.'

He paid it no mind however, continuing his run fearlessly. The beasts tail shot forward at it, and Itachi noted the sharp edge as he narrowly dodged it, his Sharingan blazing to life.

'An evolved tool for stabbing that the others did not have.'

He leaped to the side to avoid its mouth, bringing his hands up to his mouth.

**'Katon: Gokakyu!'**

The grand ball of fire that was famous in Konoha as the signature technique of the Uchiha clan rushed towards the giant beast. It's size prevented it from dodging, and it took a direct hit. The ball of fire and heat exploded outward as it collided with the skin, eliciting a deep roar from the beast.

It quickly fell over onto its side, breathing deeply. Itachi calmly walked toward it, the kunai slicing across the throat of the beast, where he had discovered the skin was softer and easier to pierce. Needless to say, it was still very tough, but with some force applied, it was cut.

He stood up, wiping the kunai against the skin of the monster and putting it back into his pouch.

Itachi stood up, the rush of battle leaving him slowly. The sound of approaching footsteps alerted him of the soldiers approaching him, and he turned to meet them

Their faces were weary from the battle, and while they appeared to mean no harm, their hands remained close to their swords, in the case that their saviour turned out to be an enemy. One of the soldiers walked up to him, his sword sheathed.

The soldier smiled amiably, offering Itachi his hand. He stared at it for a moment, before hesitantly taking it with his own.

The soldier spoke, shaking Itachi's hand. "I am Commodore Segusa, and on behalf of my men, and myself, I thank you for killing those Ice Dragoons. Without your assistance, we certainly would've died. I will ensure you are rewarded generously, as long as you return with us to our home. But I must ask, what is the name of your Teigu? I have never seen one capable of creating such strong flames."

Itachi blinked, the new terms flowing through his head. It appeared those monsters were called Ice Dragoons, giving him name for the previously unnamed hostile species. But he had only one question that truly remained...

What on earth was a Teigu?!

**-The End-**

_**Well, I'm back with another story. I would update my other ones, but after three months of not logging into fanfiction, all the progress I had made for the next chapters got deleted, leaving me very, VERY sad. I'm currently busy gathering the courage to rewrite them T_T**_

_**Anyway, I've recently been watching Akame ga Kill, and with Naruto ending, I figured why not. I was originally going to put Sasuke into this, but I personally like Itachi's character much more, and I thought it would be interesting to see him in the world of Akame ga Kill, fighting against the evil Empire. This was a fairly action packed chapter, considering it was the first chapter of a story, which frankly surprised me. I usually don't do that, but oh well, better for you guys. I'm gonna try and keep Itachi's character how he would normally act and HOPEFULLY, I won't ruin him. He's like my most favourite character ever :D**_

_**Also, I still have to go back and re-write the first six-ish chapters of Wind Shadow of Fairy Tail. At the time, they seemed good. However, my writing style and just the quality of my writing has certainly progressed, so I'm gonna go back and set those chapters with the format and style of writing I usually have. Oh, and fix bunch of grammar mistakes in some of them because they were the unbeta'd chapters. So yeah, I'll do that first before attempting to go back to writing the next chapter for it. And I was almost done it too T_T**_

_**Review and tell me what you think.**_

HokagenoNaruto, out.


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